


in five years time

by greywardenblue



Series: falser than vows [2]
Category: October Daye Series - Seanan McGuire
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-14
Updated: 2019-08-14
Packaged: 2020-08-23 18:53:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,097
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20247658
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/greywardenblue/pseuds/greywardenblue
Summary: “It was never meant to be serious. Rand loved the Lady Torquill, and Simon loved the Lady fostered with them, the same way his brother did. It was never meant to be serious…”‘vows made in wine’ tells you how it ends, but this is how it starts.





	in five years time

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Idril_Celebrindal](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Idril_Celebrindal/gifts).

> In five years time, I might not know you  
In five years time, we might not speak  
In five years time, we might not get along  
In five years time, you might just prove me wrong  
\- Noah & The Whale: Five Years Time

“Just think about it. I am clever, entertaining, incredibly handsome…”

“Oh, yes, you’re quite a catch,” Simon said with a laugh.

Rand grinned at him from when he was sprawled out on the other’s bed. “Exactly! But without the sarcasm.”

He didn’t really use to spend time alone with one of the Torquill twins, mostly because they were usually together and he disliked being outnumbered, and also because he preferred the company of September and Morane. But Morane wasn’t around anymore, September was married, and Sylvester was out with Amandine on what might or might not have been a date - which left him alone with Simon Torquill, drowning their heartache in wine.

“What does he have that I don’t? Nothing. And it’s not like he is Daoine Sidhe either.”

“Still, there’s a difference between marrying below your status and marrying a beast, don’t you think?”

Rand couldn’t quite decide if Simon meant that to be a joke or not, but he threw a pillow at the other man anyway.

“A beast! Hah. I’ll show you a beast if you keep running your mouth. Your kind thinks a pretty face puts you above everyone.”

“You’re pretty enough yourself,” Simon said, and Rand dismissed him with a wave.

“Well, of course. I just said that a minute ago.”

Simon shook his head in amusement, then suddenly stood up. “Wait here.”

Rand frowned. “What?”

“Wait here, and don’t move! I’ll be back in a minute.”

He hurried out of the room, and Rand fell back on the bed in confusion. Well, alright then. Staring at the ceiling wasn’t much fun, but the faint apple-scent of the sheets was comforting enough that he was half-asleep by the time Simon came back.

Simon was clutching a dress in his hands that he was clearly trying to hide as he hurried back to the room. Rand watched him curiously, and sat up with widening eyes when Simon put the dress down and started pulling off his own clothes.

“Wait. What are you doing?”

“We are going to pretend I’m September, and you are going to try to convince me that you are my perfect match.”

Rand’s eyes wandered over the exposed skin as Simon struggled with undressing in his current drunken state. He might not have been as muscular as his brother (whom Rand accidentally caught without his shirt once, which neither of them will ever talk about), but then he was always the diplomat, never the hero. “Why?”

“Because I want to properly hear your case. If you can’t convince me, you’ll hardly have a chance of convincing her.” Simon was struggling with the dress now.

Rand snorted. “And tomorrow, I dress up as Amandine?”

Simon chuckled. “I might survive stealing my sister’s dress, but Amy would skin you alive.” He paused “Come over here and help me tie this, I can’t reach the back.”

Rand sighed and got up from the bed, only having to wobble a tiny bit before finding his balance. Cats always land on their feet, after all.

The scent of apples felt stronger as he stepped up behind Simon, and he leaned closer by instinct, his hands finding the ribbon around the man’s waist. He heard Simon’s breath catch in his throat, and he paused for a second before a grin spread on his face.

“It’s my pleasure to help you,  _ Lady  _ Torquill,” he breathed in Simon’s ear before taking a step back.

Simon turned, clearly flustered and with a faint blush on his cheeks that suited the colour of his half-long hair. “Well.” He cleared his throat, then gestured in Rand’s general direction. “Do your worst, then.”

Instead of speaking, Rand paused to take in the sight in front of him. The siblings might have looked similar, but Sylvester and Simon were identical, and yet it was still easy to tell them apart. Simon was wearing a dress that looked great on him, but he stood like Simon and moved like Simon and looked nothing like September.

“It will do,” Rand said, then stepped forward and kissed him.

He had imagined kissing September Torquill many times, in many different situations, but beneath all the daydreaming he knew one thing for sure: she would never kiss him back.

Simon did.

Rand stepped backwards smoothly, pulling Simon with him without breaking the kiss, and then--

Simon tripped in the hem of the dress and they both fell on the bed, with Simon landing on top of him.

“Aren’t you supposed to have pureblood grace?” Rand asked with a laugh, cutting off Simon’s apology.

He answered with a laugh in return. “When I’m sober, I do.”

There was a moment of silence where either of them could have said something, and that something likely would have put a stop to whatever was happening. Instead, Rand pulled him into another kiss.

\---

“We weren’t even drinking cider,” Rand murmured into his neck, half-asleep. Simon stayed silent, his hand brushing against their bodies briefly just to check they were both fully clothed. They were, although he noticed he was wearing a dress, which caused him a moment of confusion before he remembered.

He let out a breath and gave up on the idea of getting up anytime soon. Rand’s arm was flung around his waist, the man cuddled up next to him with their limbs tangled together, and anyone in their right mind knew that you didn’t get up while a cat was on you.

Besides, the other man seemed to have fallen back asleep completely, which gave him some time to think and enjoy moment.

He loved Amy, he really did, and there was no doubt about that. But Simon had known for a long time that his heart wasn’t made for only loving one person, the same way his father’s heart wasn’t made for loving one person. If anyone had asked him if he ever noticed the tomcat trailing after his sister, he would have said no - but it wouldn’t have been the truth, would it?

Simon breathed in the faint scent of pennyroyal mixing with his apples, his fingers gently caressing Rand’s shoulder. Once the cat woke up, this could go either way. Maybe they would agree to forget about this, and in five years time they would only remember the scene as a funny mistake. It’s not like anything truly happened, after all.

Rand’s eyes opened, and for a second he looked surprised and confused - then his face relaxed into a smile and he moved to close the distance between their mouths, his hand running down Simon’s side.


End file.
